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David Ortiz is an American citizen, proving that 279 career home runs make you king of one nation, but a U.S. citizenship is worth so much more. It seems like such a simple thing, to be a U.S. citizen, but citizenship has to be earned...well, unless you were born here.

My colleague here at the Globe (note how I wrote colleague, though I've never met her personally) Yvonne Abraham wrote about her experiences with citizenship a few months ago, but other than the high profile candidates (see: #34), it's a rite of passage for so many to-be-Americans that is largely forgotten about and overlooked.

I feel like dis-citizenship should be equally as much a rite of passage for our nation. First up on my docket, Elijah Dukes, Pacman Jones, Paris Hilton, and Mike Tyson (just don't tell him I said so). Some people just don't deserve to have any freedoms whatsoever. Hell, all of these people have been arrested at least once. They gave up their right to be considered fully mentally-functional human beings long ago.
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A couple interesting articles from the New York Times today. One is a story about a family who basically had a giant scavanger hunt installed in their house. Excellent job by Penelope Green. Not only is this basically every kid's dream, but there's a nice touch of sentimentality there. The prize wasn't hidden treasure; it was a father's love...or whatever you want to say to make you throw up a little bit. I thought it was nice.

And another story that bewilders me to some degree. According to science (which can prove or disprove any theory in the known world), heterosexual women are more attracted to nude women than nude men.

I knew it! Actually, there are a few things that I find puzzling - and fucking hilarious - about this piece. Doesn't this seem like a bit of a sleazy operation? Was this conducted in the backseat of someone's dirty minivan or a one-bedroom apartment downtown? If it were conducted in some kind of labratory, I'd be shocked if any arousal whatsoever took place. I'm just curious to see how these test were conducted. I know they used a photoplethysmograph, which measures heart rate, respiration, and whatnot, but you'd think there would be more to this test. Either way, it just kind of reeks of creepyness. That being said, I'm glad there is being studies devoted to such an important topic, as opposed to stupid stem cell research or leukimia or something lame like that.
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Tim Donaghy keeps talking and now the game that everyone thought was rigged is back in our attention. While maybe not as offensive as the boy-band stylings featured by Scot Pollard and Hedo Turkoglu, this certainly poses at least as equal a threat as the hair fiasco of the late 90's/early 2000's.

The NBA has already lost a ton of credibility over this whole Donaghy thing. Each foul call is disputable 90% of the time, so when you throw a monkey-wrench into the situation, it turns the sport upside down. Now every official is under fire. How does this impact the way we view a sport struggling with credibility issues as it is? The NBA received an A in diversity, but fans still aren't relating to the big salaries and questionable decisions of some of the world's best basketballers. Luckily, the NBA got their dream matchup...but even THAT makes you think. If the NBA imposed their will in 2002, as Donaghy suggested, who's to say they didn't do it again in these playoffs? If this was an organic NBA finals matchup, it sure worked out pretty well for the NBA...makes you think.
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Yin and yang.

Trevor Linden (check out those Canucks threads on draft night), one of professional sports' all-time great guys in calling it quits.

While Milton Bradley, cleansed of his hunger for umpires, has advanced to menacing broadcasters. He really must've heard too many Parker brothers jokes as a kid...
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Wikipedia Randoms

Another soccer player. So far, this isn't quite as random as I thought it's be. Today, Suriya Domtaisong gets the call. He's on the Thailand national team as a striker. He also plays for Bangkok University. Come on, we all know at least one kid from high school who applied there as a joke. I hope it wasn't their only option.

Michael Bay thinks it's a little over the top. Paris Hilton was offended by its shameless self promotion.

It's the Larry O'Brien trophy - and it's taking over the NBA finals.

By all means, try to avert your gaze. You can't. It's everywhere. During pre-game introductions, two giant replicas stand in the teams' way of taking the court, bathed in a hue of fireside-like light.

During the game is no different. A giant child-like drawing of basketball's holy grail nearly swallows the Boston Celtics center logo. Both jerseys - Lakers flavor and Celtics - have small stitched emblems. Just off Causeway street, another giant replica sits.

They are everywhere! It's the invasion of the inferior trophys! Body snatchers they are not, but they've snatched enough of my attention throughout.

I just wonder if basketball executives are aware of their attempts to undermine the legitimacy of their own trophy. Do they really feel it necessary to saturate us with imagery of their championship wares?

It's a vain, feeble attempt to pair basketball's championship with the likes of the Stanley Cup and the Commissioner's Trophy. Are cartoonish drawings and large replications really befitting of promoting a championship trophy?

If fans bring their own replicas, it's one thing, for the NBA to shove imagery down our throats is another.

This year, the L.O.B. trophy turned 30 year old. Maybe a mid-life crisis is to blame. It's had it's historic moments, sure, but a reminder of it's shape and size don't need to be visible every ten feet.

It's bad enough that the NBA has players and coaches abandon all thoughts of karma and voodoo to pose for pictures with it. Now players get to wear bad fortune.

Any given player may wearing up to two or three per game. The Celtics feature one on top of the shoulder of the warm-up jersey and one on the shoulder of the playing jersey. Kevin Garnett pounds his head against an emblem before he goes to work against the purple and gold. The trophy is checkered behind players and coaches alike at post-game press conferences. Oversaturation is the name of the game.

Necessary? Not at all. We know what it looks like.

The NHL may be lightyears away from the fanbase and support that this year's finals have received, but they feel no need to burn the image of the Stanley Cup into our eyes. In fact, when the cup made a pre-emptive appearence in this year's game five in Detroit, it was frowned upon. They don't need reminders. It makes the journey sweeter to see it for the first time.

Can we give basketball's two most prolific franchises some credit? They know what they're playing for.

The players know glory can't be stitched onto a jersey, drawn onto center court, or inflated on the sidewalk. Only one team can be called champions and there's only one actual trophy to go around.

After the toll of the final horn, Pittsburgh Penguins fans could only stand and applaud. Their team had just lost a deciding Stanley Cup game six at home. They missed crucial chances. They looked flawed, even foolish at times throughout the championship series. Still the fans clapped. Their team had lasted all of six games with the Detroit Red Wings and they were proud of it.

Surely, this was not the outcome Pittsburgh had in mind when the trade deadline rolled around. The Penguins mortgaged a slice of their future to come away with the pick of the trade litter, Marian Hossa. And so along they sent a gift basket of future success, (Colby Armstrong, Erik Christensen, Angelo Esposito, and a first-round pick) for their half-season rental. They tore up their mission statement and said "aw, heck!". For all that investment, it was a matter of inches and seconds that kept Hossa's last-ditch tie attempt out of the net.

Combined with Sid the Kid, hockey's crowned prince, and Evgeni Malkin's MVP campaign, the Penguins began a Stanley Cup run in earnest. They destroyed the very destroyable Senators, trampled over the feeble Rangers, and beat up on an injured Flyers team, all the while losing two out of fourteen playoff games.

Perhaps the Pens' biggest boost came between the pipes. Marc-Andre Fleury lost half his season to injury and nearly had his job snatched by appearing-from-thin-air Ty Conklin. His career was marked with inconsistency and failure to meet expectations. The whispers were deafening. The former number-one overall pick had all the tools, none of the track record, and dwindling time to prove he could turn in around.

Then, in the postseason, he played the best hockey of his life. Yet, all it did was delay the inevitable.

Who outside of the 313 area code - or possibly someone with an unnatural affection for buffalo wings - was not rooting for the Penguins? How could you not? It's almost unholy. Hockey's prince, 20 years of age, barely able to grow something resembling a playoff beard, yet fighting a battle against men and often winning. But this team was so much more than your run-of-the-mill NHL squad. This was hockey's version of the Yankees - everyone else's term, not mine. They have bruisers, they've had success, and they have Eastern Europeans - what's not to dislike?

It was good versus evil. Unfortunately, evil was too good.

No, they're beyond good. The Detroit Red Wings are the gold-standard for franchise success...in any sport. Better than the Yankees or Red Sox. Better than the Colts or Patriots. Better than the Lakers, Spurs, or Celtics. They're just better.

While we're not facing the Cold War any longer, a rift still exists between the United States and much of Eastern Europe and Russia. Scouting Russian players has never been easy. Bringing them overseas can be even harder. But the Red Wings make it look so easy. Four of the Wings' top five regular season scorers are Eastern Europeans drafted in the second round or later (Pavel Datsyuk, Henrik Zetterberg, Nicklas Lidstrom, and Jiri Hudler). Their captain, Lidstrom, is the first European to ever capture a Stanley Cup title as a captain. It's his fourth championship.

Hockey started the European expansion before basketball ever jumped on board. These days, many basketball teams are taking a step back from overseas talent - only three or four Europeans are projected to be drafted in the first round of this year's NBA draft. Baseball's Latin expansion took place over a number of years. Today, baseball teams have branches in Latin countries, scouting and developing Latin players are done by Latin officials in Latin countries.

The Red Wings have bucked the trend. They've adopted the sons of Mother Russia and her bordering countries for the greater part of two decades. They try to be humble and chalk it up to luck, but other NHL teams never seem to get that lucky. Surely, there is something they know that other personnel departments would like to know.

Sure, there's been some postseason disappointment, but what currect dynasties haven't had such problems? Kobe's Lakers struggled post-Shaq, the Patriots have gone Championship-less for three seasons, and the Red Sox dynasty - still strange to say - has only won two titles. The Yankees farm system was non-existent after their 90's run, the Celtics built through trades and have yet to win, and the Colts took home only one Lombardi trophy.

Since the early 1990's, nobody in any sport, salary cap or otherwise, has done it better than the Detroit Red Wings. In 16 seasons (starting in 1991-92), Detroit...

• won four Stanley cups, more than any other franchise
  
• never finished under .500 and never missed the playoffs (they are the only team in the NFL, NHL, MLB, or NBA to accomplish that)
  
• haven't scored below 93 points in a season, not counting the strike shortened season in 1994-95 when they scored a league best 70 points (15 NHL teams scored less than 93 points last season alone) and have scored over 100 points in 12 of those seasons, including EVERY season since 1998-99.
  
• led the league in points six times and won their division 12 times.
  
• have played in a staggering 214 (127-87) postseason games for an equally ridiculous average of 12.5 playoff games per season
  
• has moved forward after the retirement of Steve Yzerman and Scotty Bowman and the departure of Sergei Federov

The Detroit Red Wings story is remarkable and the franchise should stand the test of time as one of hockey's greatest franchises, even if they are lacking a few more Championships than past teams.

Where else could a 46 year-old defenseman become the oldest man to ever win a Stanley Cup? Who else could survive having a future hall-of-fame goaltending legend flounder his way to the bench in lieu of a 35 year-old superstar? Where else could a struggling defenseman, shunned in Boston, awful in Calgary, and irrelevant in Los Angeles, find redemption and log key minutes on a Stanley Cup champion?

Only one team; a team that has defined dominance in a salary cap era that trends everything towards parity. A team where Jiri Fischer and Vladimir Kostantinov, who both nearly died next to their teammates, are family.

And a team where even the defeated home crowd at Mellon Arena must stand up and applaud.

I have been awful when it comes to updating this thing, so if anybody checks this awful attempt at a blog. But, as a way to try to keep this updated as frequently as possible, I'm introducing a semi-regular-let's-hope-I-keep-doing-this-segment called Scatterbrained, with random observations or thoughts around the world. Yes, it will revolve mainly around sports, but I'll also try to throw in some real world applications and things like that. Anyway, here's to good intentions...or, since it's a blog, perhaps bad intentions.
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In his first appearence back, John Smoltz blew a save and blew out his shoulder. He had tried to switch to a 3/4 motion to ease the pain of throwing. He also says that he plans to return in 2009.

There's a lot of absurdity in the above. A 41 year old pitcher thought it was a good idea to change the pitching motion that give him 200 wins, 150 saves, and 3,000 strikeouts to ease the pain in his throwing shoulder and, on top of that, he thinks he's going to return next season and be of some value to the Braves? Prove me wrong John...
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Barack Obama announced victory last night, Hillary Clinton announced...nothing, and Bubba Clinton announced party at his house. Hillary's "committed to uniting [the democratic] party" by, apparently, refusing to accept reality for a little while longer. Obviously, she can't continue to swallow the blue pill. I mean, doesn't this thing seem a little ridiculous? It's kind of like a Royals/Rangers game in September. Get riled up all you want, it's still a futile exercise.

Then again, after 2000, who knows?
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It's been said elsewhere, but regardless of how much of a sportsfan you are, read Joe Posnanski's blog. Some of the best reading you'll see anywhere.
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The new incarnation of American Gladiators has been a guilty pleasure of mine, albeit one I'm slightly ashamed of. And when I'm not watching my future fiance trample the meek or contemplating Titan's braziere size, I'm deciding whether or not I like the contestant and root fiercely accordingly.

But this season, there are a few things that have thrown me off the bandwagon with the show. One being my complete inability to commit to watching any television program since 24 postponed it's 7th season (Hell's Kitchen was also another casualty. I miss Chef Ramsay's verbal slayings). I call it the 24 hangover and I'm still feeling the effects. The one thing that drives me crazy about Gladiators this season has nothing to do with Hulk Hogan's speech ineptitudes, but instead the manner with which they end the show.

Granted, Gladiators generally made some improvements to the Eliminator (such as putting a McDonald's ball pit at the bottom of the handbike to slow down would-be cheaters), but they made a crucial and cruel mistake at the end. Some geniouses decided it would be a grand idea to plunge the two competitors into the Gladitor ocean in their most physically taxed state. Sure, it wasn't enough that you had to face gorilla-sized humans in events where their objective is to destroy you, then talk to Mongoloid Hogan about how "awesome that was, brother, dude", but at the end of the grueling event when oxygen is about as valuable a commodity as a full tank of gas for an SUV, now you must swim. It's cruel and, while there are spotters to quickly grab said dying individual, it seems a little too dangerous and extreme for me, brother.
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The Penguins won game five of the Stanley Cup in three OTs and drew pretty good ratings in the process. Hopefully people will be watching tonight when Sid the Kid and company win game six at home and force a game seven at the Joe on Saturday.

A little presumptuous? Perhaps. We'll see.
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Can every writer in America please stop taking the "It's time to take the Rays seriously because nobody right now thinks they're for real" spin? I had them projected to finish above .500 and challenge the Yankees for the Wild Card. So far, the Yankees have only challenged themselves and the Rays have proven to be everything they could be and more. If there's anybody left that is NOT taking them seriously, they either know something we don't know or are an idiot.
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This Nick Kazcur story is just strange. Call him, agent #77. Spygate, HGH, general surlyness, and now drug use has been an offseason story on more than one occasion. No wonder the rest of country hate the Patriots.
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As Packers' running back Noah Warren and deceased Washington Redskins player Sean Taylor have illustrated, self-defense weaponry for NFL players is often of the strange variety. In this case, you can score it bedpost-1, machete-0.
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Pitch and Catch:

(Here, in the assumingly, regular segment, I'll talk about some notable pitching performances from the night before.)

- Joba Chamberlain (2.1 IP, 62-32 PC-ST, 4 BB, 3 Ks, ER) threw only about half of his pitches for strikes, but avoided a bases loaded jam (and the loss) as the Yanks were spanked 9-3. The jury's still out on this one. Sunday, he's up against Zack Greinke. What a tough way to open up your second life as a starter (Roy Halladay last night, Greinke on Sunday).

- Pedro Martinez (6 IP, 109 PC, 3 ER, 3 Ks) pitched surprisingly well and deep in his first start back from rehab against the Giants. A 109 pitch count seems a little high for my liking, but he spun some of his best breaking pitches at the end of his outing, fanning Brian Horowitz and Fred Lewis, and getting Travis Denker to ground out. If Pedey can become a good offspeed pitcher, maybe the guy does have some fuel in the tank.

- Randy Johnson (6.1 IP, 8 Ks, 3 ERs) passed Roger Clemens-McCready on the all-time strikeout list and is second only to the ol' Texan himself, Nolan Ryan, yet he somehow lost to Seth McClung (6 IP, ER, 4 Ks, 6 HA)?!?

Curiosities: Max Scherzer (1 IP, 3 ER, 3 HA) - time for a demotion?; Edwar Ramirez (0 IP, 17-3 PC-ST, 3 BB, 1 HA, 4 ER) - allergic to strikes?; Texas Rangers (7 ERs vs Cleveland, but managed a 12-7 win) - is the pitching that bad (cause the Tribe's hitting sure is)?; Zack Greinke (April: 3-0, 1.25. May: 2-2, 4.39. June: 0-1, 12.00.) - back down to earth?; R.A. Dickey (5.2 IP, 3 HA, 6 Ks, 0 ER) in relief of Erik Bedard (3.1 IP, 7 HA, 1 K, 4 ER) - choose the knuckler over the buckler?
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Wikipedia Randoms

Each week, I will go to the fabulous website that is Wikipedia or click the "Random article" page and we'll see what comes our way. If the topic is interesting, I'll dig a little deeper and try to reveal some more info about the person.

Today, it's Tina Wunderlich a german soccer defender. Lucky me, I happen to get a sports article! Too bad she wasn't a Swede or perhaps even a Russian (shut up, this isn't the cold war anymore, Joe McCarthy!), they have the natural good looks. But as it is, she's pretty legit. She recently signed on for a 16th season with FFC Frankfurt team of the UEFA (the longest serving member). She won three UEFA Cups (2002, 2006, and 2008) and six league titles with the team.

Good to see this little Wikipedia randoms experiment worked on the first try. I guarantee next time I'll get something miniscule and/or depressing, like David Faustino or Tiny Tim.

Til next time (hopefully sooner rather than later), keep Nick Kazcur away from your medicine cabinet.

Last night, evil of all colors invaded Boston. The bad guys were unavoidable. Whether it was the French language or the New York dialect, evil was visible and audible.

Yes, we're talking about sporting events here, but war is all too often associated with sports, whether it should be or not. Last night, the Boston boys resisted the enemy offensive and planted a flag of victory in good old Beantown.

It started on Causeway Street. Few in the building, whether wearing a spoked "B" or a blue and red "CH" on their chests, thought the Bruins had a chance to win a game, let alone the series. The Canadiens were faster and far more skilled. I mean, after all, this Bruins team was over it's head anyway, right?

But when the first "Ole" chants started to ring up from the crowd and the puck dropped, all that was forgotten. The black and gold blood, long dormant and coagulated, starting pumping again. The Bruins were in the playoffs and they were playing the Canadiens. Logic and despair hold no weight here.

Meanwhile, down Commonwealth Ave. in Kenmore square, the blues and reds receiving a chorus of boos, expletives, and projectiles were in full force. But there were no Canadians or Canadiens here, this was America's pasttime. And what's more American than despising the Yankees?

Red Sox Nation, card-carrying members or otherwise, was hungry for Yankee blood and wanted to see a win. Thanks to Fox, the final out of the series' second game was not broadcast because the likes of Ryan Newman and Jeff Gordon on the second lap of an agonizingly long race was deemed more important to air. Many Sox fans didn't see the game's final out, unless they tuned to FX expecting to see another Nip/Tuck rerun. Two World Series championships later, an April Red Sox victory over the Yankees is just as important as ever.
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On Causeway Street, neither side would relent. Bruins. Canadiens. Back. And Forth. NHL playoff games are like no other.

It all lead to an overtime period that the Bruins needed to win. An overtime loss would end the Bruins. Game two was agonizing enough the night before, another loss, this time on home ice, would be traumatizing. Why couldn't NESN cut away to NASCAR coverage? But Marc Savard, with all of three playoff games under his belt, would have none of it.

Speeding into the offensive zone an alert Peter Schaefer held onto the puck for hours, maybe days. Within moments, the puck off Marc Savard's stick was headed towards Carey Price on a mission for one simple thing...
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The strikezone must have felt as large as the head of a pin. It was freezing cold at Fenway Park, making every snap of the wrist and finger-grip that much more difficult. Daisuke must have been contemplating this whole American baseball thing as he toed the rubber to deliver to rivals and countrymen alike.

Strike counts were low, baserunners had a field day, swiping bases with reckless abandon, and the Red Sox lit up the scoreboard early, all while a freezing wave of red and blue (and, yes, some pink) clapped and rooted from their cramped plastic seating.

The Yanks edged back, but the result was never truly in doubt. In the ninth inning, fans and body warmth were in short supply. April baseball games are like no other.

Hideki Matsui's weak grounder off the end of the bat was handled easily by Destin Pedroia. Fans knew what that meant...
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Victory!

But more than just a win, a triumph. The Yankees fans left -- most of them before the game's conclusion -- dejected and defeated, inferiority in tow.

Sunday night was a night of superiority in Boston. The Bruins and Red Sox aren't supposed to win against the Canadiens or Yankees. They're not supposed to exorcise those demons. Boston was not supposed to win, unless your team wore green.

Today, the Bruins are winners. Today, the Red Sox are winners. And, today, Boston took back the city.

No updates in awhile I realize, maybe it was the sting of the Super Bowl or the overwhelming busy schedule I've had. But this is my gift to you for being so patient. Note the subtle yet complex lyrics changes.

As I discussed in my Super Bowl preview post, you will see a wave of Super Bowl predictions heading into this weekend. So, I decided to make things easy for you guys so you could find your favorite expert easily. Here are a few...I will add more if I see them.

David Carty        WEBN                         Patriots, 45-17

Ed Asner           Actor                        Giants, 7-3
John Banks         ESPN.com editor              Patriots, 27-23
Tiki Barber        Former Giant RB              Giants, 21-20
Jarrett Bell       USA Today                    Patriots, 34-24
Chris Berman       ESPN                         Patriots, 35-20
Mark Blaudschun    Boston Globe                 Patriots, 24-17
Michael Bloomberg  NYC Mayor                    Giants, 31-28
Ralph Branca       Baseball Legend              Giants, 34-31
Cris Carter        Former WR/Yahoo Sports       Patriots, 27-23
Brooklyn Decker    SI Swimsuit Model            Patriots, 31-28
Palxico Burress    NY Giants WR                 Giants, 24-17
Jeff Burton        NASCAR Driver                Patriots, 34-13
Dr. Joyce Brothers Psychologist                 Giants, 17-10
John Cena          Wrestler                     Patriots, 34-14
Jeff Chadiha       ESPN                         Giants, 24-23
John Clayton       ESPN                         Patriots, 38-24
Jason Cole         Yahoo Sports                 Patriots by 10
Mark Cuban         Mavs Owner                   Giants, 28-16
Nate Davis         USA Today                    Patriots, 31-23
Mike Ditka         Sunday NFL Countdown         Giants
Kevin Paul Dupont  Boston Globe                 Patriots, 24-13
Gregg Easterbrook  ESPN.com Writer              Giants, 20-19
Omar Epps          Actor                        Patriots, 35-24
Mike Eruzione      Miracle Worker               Patriots, 38-21
Tim Fox            Former Patriot               Patriots, 37-17
Greg Garber        ESPN.com Writer              Patriots, 38-21
Chris Gasper       Boston Globe                 Patriots, 42-28
Jeremy Green       Scouts Inc.                  Patriots, 27-23
Dave Grohl         Foo Fighters                 Patriots by 3
Kirsten Haglund    Miss America                 Patriots, 31-20
Mike Hayden        CIA Director                 Giants, 28-24
Jamele Hill        ESPN                         Patriots, 38-31
Gary Horton        Scouts Inc.                  Patriots, 31-20
Randy Jackson      Idol Judge, dawg             Patriots by 7
Tom Jackson        Sunday NFL Countdown         Patriots
LeBron James       Cleveland Cavaliers          Patriots, 34-14
Jared              Lost weight eating...subs?   Giants, 31-24
Keyshawn Johnson   Sunday NFL Countdown         Patriots
Stacy Keibler      Much taller than an elf      Patriots, 32-17
Matt Kenseth       NASCAR Driver                Giants, 24-21
Keith Kidd         Scouts Inc.                  Patriots, 27-20
Peter King         Sports Illustrated           Patriots, 34-27
Doug Kretz         Scouts Inc.                  Patriots, 31-17
Sean Leahy         USA Today                    Patriots, 31-20
Madden 08 Sim      Boston Globe                 Patriots, 34-14
Madden 08 Sim      EA Sports                    Patriots, 38-30
Marwan Maalouf     Scouts Inc.                  Patriots 28-27
Jackie MacMullan   Boston Globe                 Patriots, 31-24
Mike McAllister    ESPN.com editor              Patriots, 34-24
Jim McBride        Boston Globe                 Patriots, 31-10
Jim McCabe         Boston Globe                 Patriots, 37-20
Maria Menounos     Emerson Grad (kinda...)      Patriots, 30-27
Dennis Miller      Comedian                     Patriots, 19-0
Marisa Miller      SI Swimsuit Model            Patriots, 31-24
Ken Moll           Scouts Inc.                  Patriots, 28-17
Chris Mortensen    Sunday NFL Countdown         Patriots
Matt Mosely        ESPN                         Patriots, 31-17
Jay Novacek        MSNBC                        Patriots pull away in 4th Q
Keith Olbermann    MSNBC                        Giants, 27-21
Shaquille O'Neal   Terrible FT Shooter          Giants, 21-20
Bill O'Reilly      Fox                          Giants, 31-30
Haley Joel Osment  Sees Dead People             Patriots, 34-20
Arnold Palmer      Golfer                       Giants, 28-21
Len Pasquarelli    ESPN                         Patriots, 31-20
Tom Pedulla        USA Today                    Patriots, 28-10
Michael Phelps     Swimmer                      Patriots, 24-17
John Powers        Boston Globe                 Patriots, 31-20
Mike Reiss         Boston Globe                 Patriots, 34-13
Don Rickles        Comedian                     Patriots, 21-12
Charles Robinson   Yahoo Sports                 Patriots, 28-24
Tom Rock           Newsday                      Patriots, 34-24
Mitt Romney        Next guy to drop out         Patriots, 28-14
Bob Ryan           Boston Globe                 Patriots, 31-21
Mike Sando         ESPN                         Patriots, 30-20
Dan Shaughnessy    Boston Globe                 Patriots, 38-35
Pam Shriver        ESPN Tennis                  Patriots, 24-13
Elisabeth Shue     Actress                      Patriots, 31-20
Bill Simmons       ESPN.com                     Patriots, 42-17
Michael Silver     NFL Columnist                Patriots, 31-28
Sluggerrr          KC Royals Mascot             Patriots, 45-14
Emmitt Smith       Sunday NFL Countdown         Patriots
Rachel Smith       Miss USA                     Giants, 29-28
Sheldom Spencer    ESPN.com editor              Giants, 27-23
Scott Symmes       ESPN.com editor              Giants, 27-24
Bobby Thompson     Baseball Legend              Patriots, 28-21
Wright Thompson    ESPN.com Writer              Giants, 35-3
Scott Thurston     Boston Globe                 Patriots, 46-10
Carrot Top         ...Does he do anything?      Patriots, 27-23
Michael Vega       Boston Globe                 Patriots, 38-35
Vegas Vic          Philadelphia Daily News      Patriots, 31-24
Dick Vitale        ESPN College Hoops           Giants, 28-24
Dwayne Wade        Miami Heat                   Patriots, 27-17
Kerri Walsh        Volleyballer                 Patriots, 35-27
Carl Weathers      Actor                        Patriots, 31-17
Tom Weir           USA Today                    Giants, 31-27
Larry Weisman      USA Today                    Patriots, 30-23
Mike Wilbon        PTI                          Giants, 29-28
Adam West          Batman                       Patriots by 7 to 10 points
Eric Wilbur        Boston.com Sports Producer   Patriots, 54-17
Matt Williamson    Scouts Inc.                  Patriots, 33-20
Gene Wojciechowski ESPN.com Senior Writer       Patriots, 30-23
Skip Wood          USA Today                    Patriots, 38-17
Joanne Woodward    Actress                      Patriots, 28-14
David Wright       NY Mets                      Giants, 27-24
Dr. Z              Sports Illustrated           Giants, 24-20
Jeff Zillgitt      USA Today                    Patriots, 35-24

By now, anyone not living a rock or playing the Joker in the upcoming Batman movie is looking forward to Volume 19 of America vs the Patriots. America's latest team of choice, the New York Giants, have essentially shocked the football populous en route to their second Super Bowl appearance of the decade. The G-Men started out the season predicted by many to be overshadowed, outplayed, and just plain beaten up by the teams in their division. A fourth place finish seemed to be in the cards.

Can you blame the analysts? Tiki Barber was bashing his teammates openly and allegedly sharing secrets about their schemes with his brother Ronde. They had a fresh faced quarterback who still looked like he had some puberting to do. On top of all that, Tom Coughlin was basically a walking corpse of a coach, somehow avoiding the axe (and the bullet, and the cyanide, and the dagger, and...) from the previous season's meltdown. Nevertheless, the boys in blue find themselves, for the second time this season, the object of America's affection and competition to history.

Last time out, 16-0 meant nothing to the Giants. The #5 spot was locked down. There was really nothing to play for. But watching that game, you'd never have known. Coughlin threw his men into the fire, testing their resilience, fight, and their ability against the league's resident freak of nature. They lost, just like their 15 predecessors had, but the meaningless game took meaning for these Giants. They knew they could hang with the best. They knew with a little extra oomph, they could put a scare into a team that knew no fear. In December, the Patriots stormed New York like the monster from Cloverfield with thousands of minions by their side. It felt like the Super Bowl. Nerves were so high that indulgent Patriots and Giants fans drank all the alcohol in Giants Stadium that night, much to the chagrin of freezing cold and stone cold sober Jets fans who had to watch Kellen Clemens and Brodie Croyle play for draft picks the next day. The atmosphere was electric that Saturday night and, maybe, it seemed destined that these two teams would meet again.

Since Scotland's greatest American football expert Lawrence Tynes kicked the Giants to Arizona (and saved his job in the process) Giants fans nation-wide have come out from the woodwork, talking up a storm only New York fans could. The New York post called Tom Brady a "girlie man" and opening the flood of questions regarding Bootgate. Tom Brady has since been absent from practice twice. The Boston Herald put his picture on a milk carton on their front page and The Boston Globe put his locker on the front page of their sports section. Has Tom Brady abandons his Patriots in their most important game in franchise history? Is Tom Brady sitting on an island sipping tea with Dave Chappelle, Amelia Eirhart, and Dr. Livingston? Is his leg even attached anymore?

Please. If there's one thing the immortal Tom knows, its gritting through the pain and going out for the W. These days there isn't a single quarterback who can hold a candle to Tom Brady's accomplishments. Not Joe Montana. Not Brett Favre. Nobody. The three rings on Tom Brady's hand, two Super Bowl MVPs, and regular season MVP awards are all priceless accolades, though I'm sure you could figure out the monetary value if you crunched numbers and consulted an accountant, but we'll save the math work for tax time. Basically, all accolades and numbers aside, the name "Tom Brady" in Latin means "I just like to win all the time" and that's exactly what he does. Sure, with a couple pro-bowl caliber receiver he can torture secondaries with Jack Bauer-like ruthlessness, but it's so much more than that. Winning is a part of his DNA structure. In the future, if John Hammond decided to construct an island where the DNA of football players was reanimated as a tourist attraction, whoever is coaching would pick Tom Brady under center above all others. Why? Have you seen the resume? It speaks for itself.

Eli Manning, on the other hand, has bigger shoes to fill. In addition to being branded with that dreaded label "shows flashes of brilliance", he was on the fast track out of New York (along with Coughlin) as early as two months ago. He was a bust, he was finished. Then, those Manning genes kicked in. After a disappointing performance, throwing 2 picks against Buffalo the week before, Eli registered a season high in passer rating (118.6) and tied his best in passing touchdowns (4) against these very Patriots. Since then, the boy who threw 20 interceptions this season grew into a remarkably stable man, going 53/85, for 499 yards, 4 TDs, and 0 INTs, in three playoff road games, one of which his hand was freezing to the ball. You grow up pretty fast in those conditions.

So what does the quarterback match-up mean? Not a lot. Tom Brady is a game changer regardless of his supporting cast while, traditionally, Eli Manning's success doesn't have a lot to do in the outcome of the game (his quarterback rating is .5 points better in Giants' wins). New York has learned to take what they can get from Eli, but their strength comes on the defensive line. Michael Strahan's return gave bite back to the line. It helps that the line remained healthy this year. The last few weeks, the Giants have played with a mission. Many will be quick to point out that they barely edged by some teams in the postseason, but, nevertheless, Eli's Giants remained strong in the face of adversity (I know, I can't believe it either). Is confidence enough to dethrone the king?

If there's one thing we've learned, it's that the underdog is dead...perhaps killed by that awful Underdog movie. When the Patriots booked their plane tickets to New Orleans back in 2001, there was not a single prognosticator, not a single public figure on the planet willing to predict a Patriots victory. It's too bad. If someone had, they'd be billed as a guide to the spiritual world, truly in touch with members of the great beyond, and still probably utterly insane for making such a prediction. These days, ESPN runs the same half hour show with the same information, regurgitated, reprocessed, repackaged, and repeated that discuss every solitary detail of the sports universe. No potential upset goes unannounced. This upcoming week, the casual sports fan is likely to hear prognostications from at least a few dozens sources. Who's to say which of those 36 Super Bowl predictions will be right? Nevertheless, they're all experts. Many of said experts will go against the grain in an effort to gain credibility for not making the safe pick. Thus, the underdog becomes trendy, even wanted. I'm not saying the Patriots changed all that, I'm not even saying ESPN changed all that, it just happened that way. There will never again be an underdog that doesn't have a reasonable chance to win, even if they don't have a reasonable chance to win.

Of course, the Giants are the latest incarnation of the popular underdog. ESPN's latest Sportsnation poll has about 59.5% of the world picking the Patriots. More shocking is the fact that 39.5% of people favor an NFC team beating an 18-0 team that has obliterated nearly every significant offensive record on the charts and proved its running prowess last week. Eli Manning, at his best, isn't Brady or Peyton and won't be a game changer.

Yet, these last few nights, on consecutive nights, I dreamt the Patriots would lose. But, one was a dream where they lost to the Chargers in the AFC Championship and last night's dream featured the Pats losing to the Eagles in the Super Bowl with a dejected Jake Duhaime on the sidelines. What does it all mean? One, my dreams are highly inaccurate and, two, in the real world, the Patriots are far better than any fan could have dreamt.

My prediction, one of thousands you'll see this weekend, is Patriots over the Giants, 45-17. We know they like to embarrass teams and we know that the Giants used to be in the business of being embarrassed. It seems only a logical conclusion to me that the Patriots stomp all over the Giants (and America) to round the best season in NFL history. But then again, in a season where a team went undefeated, how can anybody have any idea what will happen to round out a zany season? Getcha popcorn ready.

My thoughts about last weekend's divisional match-ups and a look ahead to championship weekend...

Some may laugh and it will certainly become a staple sound bite on talk radio for years to come, but T.O.'s tearful defense of Tony Romo really spoke volumes to me. This is a guy who once called Jeff Garcia, as best as I can tell, a duck and ruined Donovan McNabb's career (13-13 since his departure and a groin made of styrofoam). Not only has T.O. seemingly...temporarily...POSSIBLY matured, but he refused to throw Romo under the bus and, instead, stood up for the underachieving slinger. Can you imagine what he would say about Donovan or Jeff in this situation? Terrell might as well walk up to the podium with a gas canister in hand with all the bridges he'd burn. And instead, we see a loyal, emotional T.O. reminiscent of Rod Tidwell speaking volumes of "his teammate". Touching. For once, I side with Owens. For all the rotten things he's done in his career - all the driveway sit-ups, popcorn references, and excessive endzone celebrations - he finally gets it. Maybe.
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Wade Phillips post-season record? 0-4. Looks like that relaxed technique is really working out. At least Tony Sparano (not Soprano) and Jason Garrett are coming back...oh yeah...ouch.
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If, for some strange reason, the Pats weren't allowed to compete in the playoffs, I'm fairly certain Jack Del Rio's Jaguars would win the Super Bowl. They had all the tools, an energetic physical D, a great running game, a smart quarterback, and a no non-sense head coach. Perhaps in another dimension, Jackie-boy.
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Brett Favre coming back from a 14-0 deficit and scoring 42 points with the sky falling at Lambeau Field ranks among one of the best quarterback performances of the decade. The man's 38 years old going on 28. Amazing to think that people were clamoring for his retirement for the last 4 seasons, this guy could go into his mid-40's at this rate and if you doubt that, check his iron-man streak. We're not just watching a legend at work, we're watching a freak of nature.
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With Mike Holmgren and Tony Dungy talking retirement, it seems like a very real possibility that two of the more familiar faces among the NFL coaching ranks in my lifetime are headed for the golf course. I remember being a Packers fan in the mid-90's under Holmgren's watch and the tremendous work he did with that team. Unfortunately, I also remember his awful clock management in Super Bowl XL. He's been around the league for about as long as I've been alive, so it will be weird to see him gone. Tony Dungy has always been a gentleman and a scholar. He took getting punted from Tampa Bay with the greatest of professionalism and his Super Bowl win in Indy was a true win for football as a sport. You'd be hard pressed to find a guy as well-liked and well-respected as Dungy. Two tremendous coaches and four giant shoes to fill.
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You can bet the Chargers haven't forgot the Patriots "classless" celebration at Qualcomm last year. But you can also bet that the Pats haven't forgot LT's earlier wise cracks about cheating. What do I look for this Sunday. Physicality, speed, and neither team giving a single inch. LT was hurt in last week's match-up, but as long as his leg is attached, he'll be on that field trying to excercise his past Patriots demons. Whether it's Billy Volek or Phil Rivers really doesn't matter, their job will be to limit mistakes, pray to God that Antonio Gates is good to play, and stick that ball in between LT's fifth and sixth rib snuck and secure.

My prediction? I still maintain that the Chargers would have lost to a healthy Titans squad (they still almost lost as it was) and they gave up an NFL record 296 rushing yards to a rookie playing in his 8th NFL game. The Patriots destroyed the Chargers back in week 2 (trust me, I was there) and I see no reason why it won't happen again. San Diego may have taken down a Colts team that apparently had no desire to repeat as champs, but disinterest won't be an issue on either sideline this week. Pats win, 31-24.
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Raise your hand if you thought Eli Manning would be playing in the NFC Championship game. Yeah, exactly. I've trashed Eli all year long, calling him a 12 year old and hoping that Tom Coughlin would get the axe so that Eli would be next on the old chopping block, but, this just in, the kid can play! The kid who once put up a stink about playing in sunny San Diego, under the radar, with LT in his backfield, and under the direction of offensive wizards Cam Cameron and Marty Schottenheimer (oops, oops, oops, and oops) to play under the spotlight in New York where he'd receive every millimeter of blame the adoring public could possibly dish out. The Giants, under the watch of a coach brought back from the dead and a 12 year old, have overcome several big injuries to get where they are now and I give them a ton of credit for knocking off an extremely talented Cowboys team.

Unfortunately, the fun stops here. Favre's been a pro since Eli was 10 years old watching Power Rangers (it's ok Eli, I did too). Favre and the Pack's loaded D takes down the Giants 17-14.
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So that leaves a rematch of Super Bowl XXXI where the late Reggie White terrorized the statue wearing a #11 Pats jersey, Desmond Howard put the nail in the coffin with a 99 yard kickoff in the Pats less-than-glorious Tuna days. We'll see if this scenario shakes down, but if it does, here's to a throwback for the ages!

Stuck at the Boston Globe answering phones during the Pats/Jags, I decided to keep a running log of my various thoughts throughout the course of the game. Here they are, for your viewing pleasure.

8:10 PM - Here's the only stats Bill Belichick probably preached to his team this week. The Jags enter the match-up 1-0 and the Pats enter 0-0 in 2008.

8:14 - Ever notice how infuriating those few minutes before kick-off can be? Those are only heightened here in the post-season.

8:15 - As the kick is in the air, I get my first "analyst call" - someone asking me a question directly pertaining to the game (I guess Phil Simms' expansive knowledge can't cover everything). Somebody asks how old "Ted" Bruschi is. I resist the urge to say I don't know the man and instead answer with a solemn "34", which is about as old in football years as it is in dog years.

8:19 - After a quick Jacksonville strike into Pats territory, James Sanders (12th man of the year) makes the stop on 3rd down.

8:21 - In a Belichickian move, Del Rio goes for in on 4th and Garrard completes a long strike downfield to Mercedes Lewis. 1st and goal Jags.

8:24 - David Garrard (who's knee was DOWN) completes a pass (with his knee on the ground!) to Matt Jones to put 6 on the board. Petrie, the newest Emerson co-op, let's out a "What a play!" in that hushed, newsroom kind of voice. Petrie's a Jets fan, so all he has to root for is Patriots infamy. Bill fails to throw the hankey out in time and the Jags have an early lead.

8:33 - Old Depressed Guy (ODG, we'll call him) calls up to ask for the NFL's address. This inquiry lasts pretty much the entire Patriots' drive. Two things you can count on working at the Globe Saturday nights, Speck will shoot his plastic gun once or twice and ODG will be calling. Usually, I just hope to dodge that bullet.

8:34 - I can only wonder what kind of monotony the NFL Headquarters is in for. If some wacko walks in there and blows himself up, I'm deleting this post and refusing to acknowledge I ever gave someone such an address.

8:36 - Pats cap a 10 play, 74 yard drive with a Brady-Watson connection in the back of the endzone. More a sigh-of-relief touchdown than anything. Nobody wanted Jags to have the ball already up 7...well, except Petrie.

8:39 - Another "analyst call". Someone wants to know the line for today's game and the largest spread ever in post-season history. I get the feeling 90% of our callers gamble on sports. Oh well, it's not as bad as the guy who wanted to know the Westwood One affiliate for Atlanta.

8:41 - Coaches are watching the game too. They wait until commercials to call in scores. Convenient for them, not so much fun for me.

8:42 - Pats recover a fumble in Jags territory. Behind me, I hear requests for Speck to fire his gun. See? Saturdays are predictable.

8:45 - The Eagle has landed, albeit 15 minutes late, which means the pizza is here. One of the best parts about this job, every Saturday, we get pizza. So, literally, I get to work with sports, eat pizza, and watch (most) of the Patriots game. I love this job. By the way, when Matt Ryan gets drafted, I plan on yelling "the Eagle has landed!". I also plan on nobody getting the joke.

8:51 - I get back with the pizza just in time to see Maroney punch in the Pats second score.

8:57 - Jacksonville having no problem moving the ball downfield. Pats pin the Jags deep, they run it down our throats. Not a good sign.

9:00 - In between these numerous annoying phone calls, I glance around at the televisions in the sports department and I'm hard pressed to find one that was born AFTER me. They all have the same negative information though. 1st and goal from the 2 yard line. With this Jags running game, there's no way they won't score...unless CBS jinxs them with a graphic (please, please!)

9:02 - A false start pushes Jacksonville back 5 yards. Meanwhile, every boys hockey coach in the world waited to report their scores til DURING the Patriots game. Come on guys...I'm revoking all your man cards.

9:03 - Garrard squeezes a pass in to Ernest Wilford to tie up the game. How does he complete these impossible passes? If he had a Pats or Colts logo on his helmet, this guy might just be breaking records too.

9:13 - A Pats fan calls me up to ask if the post-season is "practically over" if the Pats win tonight. Gotta love Boston sports fans! In a tied AFC divisional match-up, somebody's asking me if the AFC Championship and the Super Bowl are not even worth playing if the Pats win tonight. Well, let's see, the 13-3 defending champs are waiting for us and an ageless Brett Favre just scored 42 points in the snow...yeah, I'd say if we win we're a lock.

9:18 - You'd be amazed at the popularity of Curry College. Seems like every week someone is looking for a score. This week, both the men's and women's teams lost. I feel your pain, buddy. Same happened to my Emerson Lions. Hey, at least the men are relevant this year. They've been getting votes on d3hoops.com!

9:21 - http://www.d3hoops.com/top25/. I didn't expect you to believe me, but it's true.

9:24 - I finally sit down with some pizza. It's an unwritten rule that the Hawks have to wait for the grizzled vets to get some pizza before we can. My pizza's cold. Oh well, still no complaints...unless we're talking about the game, that is.

9:28 - Ok, so I'm TRYING to watch Steven Gostkowski miss his field goal in peace and eat my pizza, but, of course, New Hampton didn't report their hockey scores yet! Good thing they called so soon! Oh yeah...Gostkowski missed it...thanks for ruining the moment, New Hampton!

9:31 - It's tied at halftime. Looks like Jack Del Rio might just have something going here. Right now, he reminds me of that alternate costume video game character, you know, when you hit "x" instead of "square". He's the alternate costume Bill Belichick...and that concerns me.

9:33 - Halftime's here. That means I'm putting on my thinking cap cause we're sure to get some dumb questions from saused and distraught fans. I'm expecting to be asked if Mike Piazza is gay about a dozen times...and yes, I'm serious.

9:36 - Oh yeah, the Celtics are up by 2, not that you'd be able to tell. It's not on a single one of the dozen or so TVs within my range of sight. Good thing the Bruins were on at 1 PM today or they'd get zero watchers. I'm serious, zero. Jack Edwards could do all his strange references and nobody would hear him. As it was, hockey fans were treated to a pretty good game in what's becoming a good rivalry. Well, I think I've reached my hockey quota...any more hockey talk and I'll lose you, so I promise, I'm done.

9:40 - Ok, one more tidbit. Tim Thomas (the league leader in save percentage) should be an all-star...way to screw it up, NHL. Ok, that's it...maybe.

9:44 - Second half underway. The kick return game isn't getting anything done today. Petrie suggests that the Jags onside-kick it to begin the quarter. I can't say that's a bad idea right now. Everything seems to be pointing towards Jacksonville right now. Let's hope Tom Terrific turns this around.

9:47 - At this point in the game, Garrard is 12/14 (and one incompletion was a drop) for 149 yards and Brady is 14/14 for 131 yards. I don't even remember any Manning/Brady match-ups where you had such efficient quarterback play. What is this, Madden 08?

9:51 - A Madden-esque spin move puts Gaffney at the 7 yard line. Seriously, I think we're watching a video game simulation.

9:52 - Touchdown, Brady to Welker! In case anybody forgot, the Pats acquired Welker and Moss for a 2nd, 4th, and 7th round pick. Have any two receivers EVER been stolen so easily? In case you were wondering, Samson Satele (2nd - Dolphins), John Bowie (4th - Raiders), and Abraham Wright (7th - Dolphins) were the draft picks. No tradebacks! Even if each of those players (2 DBs and a center) go on to be pro-bowlers, these trades still favor the Pats. Even Kevin McHale thinks this was a little one-sided.

9:58 - Detroit hung on to beat Charlotte in OT, 103-100. The Bobcats are scaring some teams lately. Meanwhile, the Celts are in dire straits, enough that Crowe just called for a 4-point play. Good luck.

10:00 - I wonder what Byron Leftwich is up to. Probably eating cold pizza like me.

10:03 - The Celts are doing their best to make a mole-hill out of a mountain. At least it's entertaining, but this game's over.

10:08 - Something prompted the copy editors to Google "Barney Frank's gay lover". Apparently it got a lot of hits and a lot of laughs. I guess the sports section isn't exactly the bastion of professionalism some people might think.

10:10 - Celts have now lost 2 of their last 3. Strange. Last year, those kind of results would have made Celts' fans happy.

10:14 - Somehow, we've shifted our discussion to baseball. Talking about abolishing/making the DH universal, Bill Hall's greatest moments, and the disgrace that is the St. Louis Cardinals. We need warm weather, now!

10:16 - Brady to Watson again for 6! Watson - 2 TDs. Moss - 1 catch, 14 yards. Ouch...I guess the Randy-ratio is not in effect tonight.

10:24 - In case you were wondering how tall Jason Giambi is (and don't know how to look up such a mindlessly easy fact), he's 6'3". Ok, drunk guy?

10:27 - So, with the game seemingly in hand, I find myself watching highlights from the Bruins win earlier. Such a sweet victory.

10:30 - Darren Bragg was a topic of conversation on Crowe's latest phone call and I was just asked how long Kevin Faulk has been a member of the Patriots, because there was a bet involved on such a fact. Only at the Globe sportsline!

10:33 - In case you were curious, here are his career numbers. We traded Jamie Moyer for this guy??

10:35 - ...and Tom Brady is 6'4". Yes, these are actual inquiries. Unreal.

10:37 - 78 yard bomb to Donte Stallworth for a big first down. Phil Simms says this "could be the difference in the game". Yeah, Phil, the four touchdowns help too. Apparently points are overrated these days.

10:40 - Some of that old Dolphins training comes in handy and Welker drops a sure first down pass. The Pats settle for a field goal...yeah, they actually made it. The "curse of the graphic" can take the blame for that one. Tom had just broken Simms' completion percentage in a postseason game record.

10:45 - Two more Bruins thoughts (we all know I wasn't done talking about hockey). 1. I miss Alex Auld's maroon Coyotes pads. 2. How much did this team need Aaron Ward? Answer: A fucking lot.

10:49 - 31-20, Jags trying to battle back. As I'm watching this desperate attempt to climb back (almost as desperate as that skinny Asian guy trying to get past Justice on the pyramid on American Gladiators), I remember all the nervous Pats fans heading into this game. We were 16-0, doesn't that buy a little peace of mind??

10:51 - And yet, the Pats have dropped two easy interceptions. If we lose, those will look big. But we're not gonna lose, so whatever.

10:51 and a half - Just as I type we're not gonna lose. Rodney Harrison intercepts Garrard. Game over. Call me back when your last name is 'Manning'.

10:58 - This game is SO over that I'm going to give my final thoughts. Despite all the praise and hype surrounding Jacksonville, all their best wasn't enough to beat down the Pats. They played physical, they played tough, they even neutralized Randy Moss. However, they were burned by Lawrence Maroney (22 carries, 122 yards) which left numerous opportunities for Brady (26/28, 262 yards, 3 TDs). Considering the Pats only scored 31 points under those circumstances, they let Jacksonville off a little easy. In the end, the Jags early running game just didn't last. David Garrard proved himself as, perhaps, one of the 5 best QBs in the game, even if he faded down the stretch. Overall, pretty much what I expected. A valiant effort for the overmatched Jags, but, in the end, the Pats just have way too much firepower.

It's on to the AFC Championship for the Pats, who will host either San Diego (minus Antonio Gates) or Indy (plus Marvin Harrison). Two tough opponents...good thing tonight's win secures a Super Bowl victory.

The Bruins have just acquired hard-hitting defenseman Shane Hnidy from the Anaheim Ducks for Brandon Bochenski. I'm sad to see Bochenski have such a rough year after things were so promising last season. Maybe a change of scenery will do him well.

By the way, do the Bruins only make trades with the Ducks these days? Since the last season, a host of players have changed places. Few are memorable faces or names, but the likelihood that Brian Burke and Pete Chiarelli are in each other's speed dial are certainly pretty high. Take a look...

Today - Acquired defenseman Shane Hnidy and a sixth round draft choice in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft from the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for forward Brandon Bochenski.

9/25/2007 - Acquired defensemen Brett Skinner and Nathan Saunders from the Anaheim Ducks for center Mark Mowers and assigned them to Providence of the American Hockey League.

7/2/2007 - Signed right wing Shawn Thornton, who had been with the Anaheim Ducks, to a multi-year contract.

11/13/2006 - Anaheim Ducks traded Stanislav Chistov to the Boston Bruins for a 2008 third-round draft pick.

Again, few memorable names or trades, but you get the idea.

One of the other interesting aspects to this trade is Hnidy's place in Boston history. Need I recall Stock/Hnidy rounds 1 & 2? Well, Youtube remembers...

The Bruins could certainly use another quality D-lineman and this gives the team another bruiser (and gets Bobby Allen off the ice). The only drawbacks to this trade are A. it gives the team one less scorer and B. It means less ice-time for the Marks brothers (Stuart and Lashoff). But I'm pretty pleased with the trade overall and we'll see what happens. The B's battle the Caps tomorrow night.